Fairway Holdings presents Sri Lankan Choral Week 2015

Friday, 13 March 2015 00:32 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Sri Lankan Festival Chorus, drawn from the finest choirs in Colombo, along with the Orchestra of the Chamber Music Society of Colombo, will stage JS Bach’s St. John Passion sung in the original language German, at St. Paul’s Church, Kynsey Road, on Saturday, 28 March at 7 p.m. as the finale of the ‘Sri Lankan Choral Week’. Entrance will be by Program, and can be purchased at the Goethe Institute, Colombo from Monday, 16 March.

Fairway Holdings, in its penchant towards promotion of arts and culture, is the long term sponsor of the Chamber Music Society of Colombo led by maestro Lakshman Joseph de Saram as well as much acclaimed Soundarie David Rodrigo’s Soul Sounds choir and is the presenting sponsor of this valuable week-long classical music event from 21 to 28 March. Throughout the choral week, British maestro Gregory Rose and Yorkshire born mezzo soprano Alison Wells will conduct specialist workshops in conducting and singing at the Goethe Institute for local and foreign classical music artists in a bid to further their knowledge and skills. Of Bach’s four monumental sacred works for choir and orchestra, the St. John Passion, remains the least known and performed. The characters include the Evangelist, a tenor part of great emotional depth and telling characterization. The tenor soloist also doubles singing profound, lyrical arias. The second is a bass, singing the part of Jesus and individual arias. There are other minor roles, including the significant one of Pilate (bass) and also St. Peter, “a Maid” and “a Servant”. The choral parts are more extravagant and is far less “controlled” than the devout St. Matthew Passion. Therefore, it gains an intimacy and a visceral excitement from a small ensemble rather than the old romantic approach that many are used to. The Passion will be conducted by Gregory Rose, and mezzo soprano Alison Wells will be the choral director. Gregory Rose, who received the Liturgical Award at the 2006 British Composer Awards for Missa Sancta Pauli Apostoli has been described in the press as a “dazzlingly clever conductor…,” has conducted an extensive body of work in the contemporary field, including hundreds of premieres both in the UK and throughout eastern and western Europe and the Far East. Yorkshire born mezzo soprano Alison Wells has appeared in all the major London concert halls and in many festivals both at home and abroad. For aficionados of the finest classical music, this certainly would be an evening to relish.